Keller - True Crime: American Monsters Vol. 11

American

Monsters

Volume Eleven

12 Terrifying Tales of Americas

Most Horrific Serial Killers

Robert Keller

PUBLISHED BY:

Robert Keller

Copyright 2017

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be copied or reproduced in any format, electronic or otherwise, without the prior, written consent of the copyright holder and publisher. This book is for informational and entertainment purposes only and the author and publisher will not be held responsible for the misuse of information contained herein, whether deliberate or incidental.

Much research, from a variety of sources, has gone into the compilation of this material. To the best knowledge of the author and publisher, the material contained herein is factually correct. Neither the publisher, nor author will be held responsible for any inaccuracies.

The lives and murderous careers of 12 of Americas most horrific serial killers, including;

: A ruthless killer who is considered by the FBI to be the most meticulous serial murderer in history.

: Home invading psychopath who committed at least 12 murders in California in the 70s and 80s. He has never been caught.

: A respiratory therapist who took to murdering his elderly patients and may have been responsible for over 100 deaths.

: Deeply disturbed slayer of teenaged boys. Maust is believed to be responsible for at least five deaths.

: A prolific Black Widow who dispatched five husbands and lovers to an early grave with her trusty vial of arsenic.

: Known as The Grim Sleeper due to the long periods of inactivity between his crimes, Franklin has only recently been convicted.

: Considered a messiah by his hippy followers, Manson inspired a series of bloody massacres that shook America to its core.

: A traveling sex slayer who may have murdered as many as 23 young women during a decade long orgy of death.

: Murderous siblings who went on a shooting spree in Columbus, Ohio, claiming ten victims.

: She may have run the most popular restaurant in Macon, Georgia, but the bubbly hostess was feeding something far less palatable to her family.

: A man with a deep-seated hatred against humanity, Nash massacred anyone who crossed his path, racking up a toll of at least eight victims.

: He was considered a pillar of the community in Wichita Falls, Texas until DNA evidence exposed him as a brutal serial killer.

You dont know what Ive done. Ive got to drink every day to forget these things. Israel Keyes

Serial murders are on the decline in the United States. From their peak in the 1970s and 1980s, the so-called Golden Age of Serial Killers, there has been a steady drop in the number of such crimes. During the 80s for example, there were an estimated 200 serial killers at large in the United States. By the first decade of the 21st century, the number was less than half of that.

Why there should be such a dramatic falling off is down to a number of factors. Firstly, law enforcement officials, in particular the FBIs Behavioral Science Unit have developed a much better understanding of serial killer methodology, psychology and modes of operation. It is therefore more likely that a serial killer will be caught early in his career, rather than going on to commit multiple murders. The second factor is perhaps even more important. Unlike in the past, data is now shared freely among law enforcement agencies, eliminating so-called linkage blindness, which was such a bane to homicide investigators. Powerful computer databases now enable lawmen to connect the dots faster, leading to quicker detection. Lastly, there have been massive advances in forensic science, chief amongst these the advent of DNA technology as a detection device.

These innovations (and others) have had a significant impact on the effectiveness of detection methods, swinging the advantage firmly in favor of the police. Indeed, it would take an especially talented criminal to get away with serial murder these days. But such killers are still out there. One of their number was a man named Israel Keyes.

Israel Keyes was born to Mormon parents in Richmond, Utah on January 7, 1978. The firstborn in his family, he would eventually have nine siblings, all of who would be raised in a strict Christian household. As a child he was home schooled and was a regular attendee at church. However, after the family moved to a rural area north of Colville, Washington, they abandoned Mormonism and began attending Christian Identity, a denomination that preached white supremacy. By then, Israel was already disenchanted with the Christian faith. He was also secretly indulging in a practice common to serial killers, carrying out acts of cruelty against animals.

Keyes grew up to be lanky and athletic, excelling in distance running. After graduating high school, he joined the United States Army in 1998, serving at Fort Lewis and Fort Hood. He also did a tour of duty abroad in Egypt, before being honorably discharged in 2001. After that, he set himself up as a carpenter, doing work for a Native American tribe in Washington State. In 2007, Keyes relocated to Anchorage, Alaska, where he founded Keyes Construction, a contracting firm of which he was the sole employee. Keyes was a skilled handyman with an eye for detail and a perfectionist nature. It wasnt long before hed gained a solid reputation and was inundated with work.

But that was only one side of Israel Keyes, the face he showed to the public. Behind that persona another lurked, malevolent and manipulative. Keyes was already well into a criminal career that dated back to his time in the military. Back then hed committed a rape on a 14-year-old girl, after hed lured her away from her friends at a camping spot on the Deschutes River near Maupin, Oregon. That attack went unreported until Keyes confessed to it many years later. He said that his intention had been to kill the girl, but that hed lost his nerve and let her go. His appetite for killing had been whetted though. Shortly after, he began planning his first murder.

Keyes was a remarkably organized criminal, one who several experts have labeled the most meticulous serial killer who ever lived. He traveled thousands of miles from his home to commit his crimes, always financing his travels through Keyes Construction in order to avoid detection. He always turned off his cell phone during these trips, paid cash for purchases, and carried no incriminating evidence. This was made possible by his habit of hiding murder kits and body disposal kits at various locations around the country. Four such stashes would later be recovered, containing weapons and items such as shovels and canisters of Drano, which he used to hasten decomposition of his victims. One of these kits was hidden outside the town of Essex, Vermont in 2009. In June 2011, Keyes returned to the area, intent on using it.

Keyes had no idea who he planned on killing in Vermont, but there can be little doubt that murder was the sole purpose of his trip. Why else would he have flown into Chicago and then hired a car to drive over 1,000 miles to Essex, a town to which he had no connection? Why else did he spend his first few days in Essex scouting various locations before honing in on one particular home? Bill Currier, 50, and his wife Lorraine, 55, were chosen for no other reason than their house was conveniently located and had an attached garage and no dog.